VIDEO: Chatham County homicides down in 2012 as concern about crime grows

Beonca Randolph holds a candle in the area of Martha and Coakley streets where her 23-year-old son was shot to death on April 20. A candlelight vigil was scheduled New Year's Eve. Marcus E. Howard/Savannah Morning News

Timothy Randolph was the seventh of 26 homicides in Chatham County in 2012. He was killed on April 20 near Martha and Coakley streets. Two teenagers were indicted by a grand jury last July in the case. Marcus E. Howard/Savannah Morning News

Timothy “Ty” Randolph was to turn 24 on New Year’s Eve, if his life hadn’t suddenly been cut short by gunmen’s bullets.

Instead of celebrating his birthday, his family and friends gathered Monday evening at the corner of Martha and Coakley streets, in a neighborhood of single-story homes just west of Sol C. Johnson High School, to remember him with a candlelight vigil.

In 2012, Randolph’s was one of 26 lives lost in homicides in Chatham County.

Each homicide involved its own unique set of circumstances that led someone to take the life of another. Nonetheless, the loss of each victim’s life impacted the lives of countless relatives, friends, neighborhoods and the community.

Of the 26 homicides reported in 2012, one was in Pooler while the rest occurred in Savannah and unincorporated Chatham County. Overall, there was a 16.1 percent drop in homicides from the previous year.

In 2011, homicides totaled 31 in Chatham County, with 28 in Savannah and unincorporated Chatham County, one in Pooler, one in Port Wentworth and one in Thunderbolt.

Maj. Larry Branson, commander of the Savannah-Chatham police department’s Criminal Investigations Division, said official records show — given mitigating circumstances in certain cases such as self-defense — that it handled 23 homicides in the past year, down from 26 in 2011.

Regardless of the exact figure, the Criminal Investigations Division is pointing to two significant accomplishments in the past year: one being the decrease in overall homicides and the second being the number of those cases it solved.

The division’s clearance rate — a measure of police effectiveness calculated by dividing the number of crimes in which an arrest was made by the total number of crimes — was 63.6 percent in 2012, Branson proudly said.

“That is well over the national clearance rate of homicides,” he said, noting also that the division solved three cases from 2011.

In all, nine homicide cases from the past year are considered unsolved and continue to be investigated, said Branson.

“The cases don’t close, so we’re always looking for leads,” he said.

Nationwide, murder and non-negligent manslaughter declined by 0.7 percent from 2010 to 2011, according to the latest crime statistics from the FBI. The arrest rate for murder and non-negligent manslaughter was 3.5 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2011.

Crime problem ‘solvable’

In the latter part of 2012, much attention was paid to criminal gangs, especially after a shooting at the Coastal Empire Fairgrounds on Nov. 3 stunned the community. Eight people were wounded at the crowded event and six suspects have since been arrested.

Gang activity has been connected to a range of criminal activity, from vandalism and burglaries to lower-level street drug sales and shootings.

“I think if we’re all reading off the same page, and we’re doing the same thing, it’s solvable,” he said during an interview. “It’s going to take all of us, the community, the courts, the whole judicial system.”

The city of Savannah recently took steps to appropriate funds for a new drug squad, and city officials have also begun discussing other ways to curb violence.

However, when asked if the homicides in 2012 showed any trends that might connect them to gangs, drugs, particular locations or some other specific problem, Branson said investigators have not found any common threads among the killings.

“There are no definable trends,” said Branson. “We can’t say that there’s a particular geographic area. We can’t say they are stranger to stranger because most of these victims knew their murderers.”

That may have been the case in Randolph’s death, according to police reports.

Case in point

On July 18, two brothers, John Montrell Small, 19, and Denvontay Rashemell Small, 18, were indicted by a grand jury on a felony murder charge in the case.

Savannah-Chatham police Detective Jason Manley testified at a May preliminary hearing that Randolph was lured to a drug deal.

Devontay Small asked a third man, Christopher Washington, to call Randolph to a “cut” off Martha and Coakley streets, Manley testified.

The Small brothers approached his vehicle, pulled semi-automatic pistols and pointed them at Randolph, said Manley. He said three or four shots were fired in an ensuing struggle.

Randolph had just completed a Savannah Tech welding program the month before he died on April 20, said Beonca Randolph. She said her eldest son left behind his own son, T.J., and three daughters, Myourie, Ashanti and Jesslyn, in addition to 4-month-old twin siblings he never met.

“He always talked about pursuing his education,” she said.

“He wanted to become this welder/apprentice to make his own dream house for him and his children. He was planning on going back to school this fall (2012) to start his goal in life.”

In need of a helping hand

On Oct. 22, another candlelight vigil was held as a substitute for a birthday.

Cleophus Donte Swann was 18 when he was found dead on East 54th Street between Bull and Abercorn streets on April 19. He was scheduled to graduate only a few months later from St. Paul Academy, where he was described as a “good child” who was fond of automobiles.

“My son’s goals were to graduate and take over his dad’s car business,” said Leteshia Bryant, who pointed out that her son largely kept to himself. “He really loved to take things apart and put them back together.”

Few details have been released about the circumstances leading up to Swann’s death. Neither a motive nor any suspects have been announced.

Law enforcement officials have long complained about a lack of cooperation on the part of some members of the public in helping investigators solve crimes. Colloquially referred to as “snitching,” assisting police is shunned in some neighborhoods.

“We don’t know why; we can’t figure that out,” said Branson.

He said the problem has only become worse since he began policing more than 27 years ago.

“The people do not want to provide information and that makes it very difficult for us. If we don’t have any forensics or witnesses that will come forth, it’s a real whodunit.”

“Very few” leads that investigators receive directly come from witnesses or people with information that may lead to an arrest, said Branson.

As a result, the department will soon officially announce the creation of its own tip line, which the public can call anonymously with information about cases. But unlike CrimeStoppers, no rewards will be offered.

“We will protect their identity,” said Branson. “We just need someone, sometimes, to point us in the right direction.”

A new year, a new start

“I still am praying for justice,” said Leteshia Bryant, who plans to start a nonprofit called Mothers Against Senseless Killings and establish scholarships in Swann’s name.

“I have forgiven in my heart whoever did this terrible thing, but still believe that justice will be served.”

Crime prevention is more complex than it may seem, said Branson.

“In nearly every one of these murders, the victims know their assailants,” he said. “If you and I have a conversation on the phone and agree to have coffee downtown, we get in your car, ride to your house and you kill me — how are we going to prevent that?”

Being visible and establishing a relationship with the public is key to crime prevention and those tasks fall largely on patrol officers, the eyes and ears of the department, whose beat work Branson praised.

He said the police chief is an advocate of community policing and constantly reminds officers to get out of their cars, talk to people and get to know the neighborhoods they’re policing.

Heading into 2013, Branson said his division will continue to remain in communication with the department’s patrol division and precinct investigators. He also said the public can expect to see detectives in areas where it may not have seen them before, focusing on “hot spots,” or high-crime areas.

“We are constantly striving to refine our investigative techniques and skills through training, and unfortunately, the experience we endure in our investigations,” said Branson.

“Every one of these victims were somebody’s child, brother, sister, father or mother. These are human lives that we’re dealing with here and we don’t treat them as numbers. We treat them and their families as people.”

The following is a list of 2012 homicide victims and information, where available, about them and their cases. Photos of all victims were not available.

1. Larry Giles, 24

On Jan. 9, Giles was shot outside a barber shop at 36th and Ash streets in west Savannah just after 11:30 a.m. He was rushed to Memorial University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

2. William Brown III, 32

On Feb. 1, Brown was found shot in the 600 block of West 41st Street about 7:30 p.m. He died shortly thereafter at Memorial. A Savannah native, Brown was educated in Chatham County public schools and received his GED, according to his obituary. It stated he was a member of St. Peter’s A.M.E. Church and is survived by a son, William Brown IV.

3. Nickifor Zephyrine, 28

Zephyrine was working as a forklift operator at a Pooler warehouse when he was shot in the head on Feb. 24 during a suspected confrontation with a fellow employee. He died that evening at Memorial. Christopher Jesse Lema, 23, was charged by police with homicide. Zephyrine was described in an obituary as a happy and outgoing man who was “always smiling and cracking jokes.” It also was said he made the best fried plantains.

4. Rufus Lee Harris, 25

Harris was shot at Colonial Village at Godley Lake near Pooler on March 1. He died of his injuries at Memorial.

5. Gregory Glenmore Harding, 31

On April 2, Harding’s body was discovered by firefighters in the front bedroom of a burning, boarded-up duplex at 612 West 48th St. Savannah-Chatham police said Harding was homeless. Cornelius Aaron Johnson IV, 43, was charged with arson and murder. However, evidence presented to a grand jury concluded arson could not be established.

6. Cleophus Donte Swann, 18

Swann was found shot to death on East 54th Street between Bull and Abercorn streets on April 19. He was to graduate from St. Paul Academy four months later. The Rev. Diane Williams of St. Paul described Swann as a “good child” who loved cars and planned to become an auto mechanic. Swann’s Facebook page listed his interests as God, family, money, cars, clothes and women, in that order.

7. Timothy Tyjuan Randolph, 23

On April 20, Randolph was shot three times at Martha and Coakley streets. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Teen brothers, John Montrell Small and Denvontay Rashemell Small, were indicted by a grand jury in July on murder and related charges for allegedly shooting Randolph during an attempted armed robbery. Beonca Randolph said her son had just completed a Savannah Tech welding program when he was shot, leaving behind one son and three daughters.

8. Grady Maurice Lipsey, 39

On June 20, police found Lipsey’s dead body with at least one gunshot wound outside a house on Cleland Street in the Hudson Hill/Bayville neighborhood on Savannah’s west side.

9. Wesley Franklin, 21

Labeled a hero, Franklin was fatally shot on June 25 after interrupting an attempted robbery at Deb’s Pub and Grub just off Skidaway Drive. The Savannah Christian Preparatory School graduate was a firefighter at the Isle of Hope Volunteer Fire Department. “He was a good kid,” Jimmy Franklin said of his son. “The boy was always smiling. He had a great smile; he was just an honest, caring, loving, happy kid.”

10. Marcus Donte Randolph, 21

On June 27, when police answered a shots fired call on East 32nd Street just east of Waters Avenue, they found Randolph, suffering from a gunshot wound. He was taken to Memorial, where he died.

11. Tyrone Bailey, 56

On July 9, Bailey died at Memorial three days after being beaten and stabbed during what was described as an argument that escalated. A 38-year-old relative, Joseph Bailey, was indicted last September by a grand jury on three counts of murder.

12. Rasheed Johnson, 21

Johnson was found dead on July 24 behind a housing unit while police were searching a crime scene behind the Kingstown Apartment complex off Skidaway Road. He was one of three men shot after an apparent shootout on South Avalon Street. The two other men were hospitalized for their injuries.

13. Dezanne Cassandra Davis, 38

Dezanne Cassandra Davis was stabbed to death on Aug. 9. Her body was found by police in a make-shift homeless camp in the wood line near Old Hitch and McAlister streets. Police said Davis was homeless. Michael Perry, 34, was charged in the stabbing.

14. Milton Moffett, 40

After receiving a call from a concerned neighbor, police discovered Moffett dead inside a home on East 54th Street in the Edgemere/Sackville neighborhood on Aug. 18. He had been shot at least once, police said. Cynthia Moffett said her husband — a father and grandfather — was active at First African Baptist Church and was the primary caretaker of his deaf and elderly mother.

15. A’kin Oswa Stevens, 36

Stevens was shot on Aug. 25 during a reported confrontation with a homeowner, who told police Stevens broke into the Cloverdale Drive home. His dead body was found by police. According to his obituary, Stevens was a Savannah native who graduated from Savannah High School in 1995. He attended Asbury United Methodist Church and worked for Roger Woods Company. He is survived by his fiancee, La`Joy Brown, and two children, Kai`vian Faitele and Jayda Stevens.

16. & 17. Emily Pickels, 21, and Michael Biancosino, 30

Police said Pickels and her companion, Biancosino, were found shot to death inside his car that had crashed through a brick wall at Frazier Homes on Sept. 1. Pickels was a local tour guide and 2009 St. Vincent’s Academy graduate. She and her mother, Janet, were past winners of the Savannah Morning News Mother-Daughter Look-alike Contest.

A 2007 Castleton State College graduate, Biancosino was an aspiring lawyer who worked at his brother’s law firm. According to the Vermont college, he was fondly called “Tuna” for his love of tuna fish. Walter Moon, 32, and Kiawana Williams, 32, were charged with crimes related to the deaths.

18. Tiyates Lamont Franklin, 19

On Sept. 2, Lamont was the apparent victim in a Labor Day weekend altercation with another man on East River Street. He was apparently shot while running east and collapsed near the Abercorn Street ramp. He died after being taken to Memorial. Lanard Akeem Mikell, 20, was indicted in December by a grand jury on malice murder and related charges. Police said the two were involved in a confrontation when the shooting occurred.

19. Thomas Phelps, 63

Phelps was found dead on Sept. 2 in the garage of his Talahi Island home after police were alerted by a relative that he’d been killed by his 14-year-old son, Preston Phelps. His son and wife were both charged in connection to his death.

20. Gregory Bivin, 24

On Sept. 26, Bivin was found slumped over in his Ford Mustang Cobra in Daffin Heights after neighbors asked emergency responders to check on him. Basheen Fayon Hills, 19, was indicted in December for murder by a grand jury, which determined he used a .45-caliber pistol. Bivin’s mother told the New Orleans Times-Picayune her son planned to save money for college while installing audio equipment. She described him as fun-loving and friendly. “We’d go to Walmart and he’d talk to the people working there,” she said.

21. Benjamin Lamar Carter, 35

On Sept. 27, Carter was found with a gunshot wound in the back of a pickup after the truck crashed in Ardsley Park. He was transported to Memorial where he was pronounced dead. The truck matched the description of one that sped away from Coastal Gold Exchange on Eisenhower Drive, after shots were fired there a few minutes earlier. The truck’s driver, Anthony Threatt Robinson, 38, was charged with felony murder due to not rendering aid but not shooting the victim.

22. Amber Deloach, 18

On Sept. 30, firefighters found Deloach’s body curled in a fetal position inside the trunk of a burning Dodge Avenger off West Oglethorpe Avenue in the Yamacraw Village area. A detective said an autopsy revealed that she died from strangulation. Police said Shan Demetrius Cheley, 36, told them Deloach agreed to exchange drugs for sex. He was arrested and is awaiting a grand jury’s review of his case. Deloach’s obituary stated the former St. Vincent’s Academy student and Islands High School alumna was an avid runner and enjoyed entering local races.

23. Freddie Jackson, 33

Jackson and a Kendra Hayes, 25, were shot Oct. 23 near the intersection of Bulloch and West 38th streets. Dwayne K. Greene, 36, was charged with murder in Jackson’s death and arrested several days later after allegedly killing another woman. Detectives testified that Greene and Jackson quarrelled over a $20 crack cocaine deal before Greene shot Jackson and Hayes, who survived.

24. Laura Dowdy, 48

On Oct. 26, Dowdy was found shot to death in her home on West 38th Street. The incident was within sight of the location where Freddie Jackson and his female companion were shot days earlier. The same suspect, Dwayne K. Greene, was charged with murder in Dowdy’s death. She had been working with police to identify Greene and was compensated with $350, according to police testimony. Greene is suspected of shooting her twice.

25. Melitha Singleton, 36

Singleton’s dead body was found by her two small children on Oct. 31, Halloween, in the master bedroom of her Bradley Pointe Apartments residence on Bradley Boulevard off Ogeechee Road. An initial autopsy finding determined she had been strangled. Police charged Thomas Montrell Jackson, 43, Singleton’s former boyfriend, with murder. His case is pending review by a grand jury.

26. William (Bill) Anderson, 24

Anderson was found dead on Nov. 3 in a park next to the Hudson Hill Community Center. Police found his body beneath a pavilion about 50 yards from a children’s play area. Bernetta Bryant Lanier described her son as a “quiet, focused, friendly and intelligent young man.” While attending Georgia State University he received an opportunity to rehab homes for Hurricane Katrina victims, his family said. He also worked for Hudson Hill’s lawn care program for the elderly and disabled. His final Twitter tweet was: “Blessed beyond Measure.”

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Go get a life or find something constructive to do with your time. All you have better to do is research the rap sheet on the deceased and make classless comments like that? Who knows you could be some pedifile, rapist, or chid predator hiding behind this profile of yours..... People like you, sickens me.

Timothy Randolf R.I.P.. This 23 year old was murdered, no two ways about it. No one should die just because they attended a drug deal. This person was shot down in the beginning of his life, and was more or less a child himself. My condolences to his six children. If he was ever married, my sympathies to his wife/ex-wives, too. A life and young one not easily forgotten.

SEEM LIKE WE HAVE A LOT OF HATERS IN THIS WORLD FIRST OF ALL TIMOTHY AND THE OTHER RANDOLPH PERSON IS NOT RELATED FOR THOSE THAT NEED TO KNOW, SECOND OF ALL IT DOES NOT MATTER HOW MANY TIMES MY SON WENT TO JAIL IT DIDNT INVOVLE KILLING SOMEONE WHILE YALL POSTING THESE PEOPLE JAIL PICTURES.... WHAT ABOUT ALL THESE OTHER FOLKS KILLING INNOCENT CHILDREN,GOING TO MOVIES KILLING PEOPLE CAUSE THEY SO INSANE, KILLING PEOPLE PUTTING THEM IN FREEZER TO EAT LATER I DONT SEE ANY OF THERE RAP SHEETS POSTED PLEASE DONT MAKE MATTERS WORST FOR MY FAMILY EVERYBODY GOT FLAWS IN THERE FAMILY YOU CAN NEVER PUT ME OR MY SON DOWN CAUSE WE ARE GODS CHILDREN, ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT UNLIKE SOME OF YALL...........

To the person that has nothing better to do than to research the rap sheet on the deceased and say heartless things about them and their family try praying. You are a sad person with several issues but one thing for sure you are not the final judge. I pray God has mercy on your soul.

Listen people - obviously these people have rap sheets and led the life that finally took them out. Beonca or whoever you are this week - lead by living right. If you would open your eyes and see what is going on, you would just shut up and go away. Your comments are pretty sad. Your choices caused the end result. All I know is that most of the homicides (except a few..) were directly caused by their pathetic choices which mostly involved drugs. As I've always said, every dog gets his.
I just have to remember to stay out of the most 'popular' drug areas and keep my head down when driving through there.

Wonder what government office Miss Beonca will be standing at today? I'm so sick of the crap going on in Savannah. Why can't people just lead decent lives and put in a day's work for once? I work two jobs and can proudly say that I've never accepted a handout, been on any government line, and raised two wonderful girls on my own. No welfare, no housing, no subsidies for daycare. It can be done - just get your priorities in order.

You don't need to make negative comments and they're not needed. Gubbermint money is sometimes welcomed and in others it's needed all the time. There is hardly anytime a felon won't turn to making illegal money so don't be so judgemental. Illegal money is always so easy to come by. It's hard to make a home when a felon raises a felon. You go girl, between your children and Timothy's children, some have a chance to be productive citizens. I'll keep you in my prayers.

First, this lady has lost her child. I'm sure she is grieving the death of her son. It is not appropriate to come on here and bash her at this time. In the event one of your love ones must go away for eternity, I hope someone pulls up your misfortunes and bash you with them. Then and only then will you understand how it feels.

Yes, it obvious that Beonca has had some troubles in her life, who hasn't? Your troubles may not have been to her magnitude, but surely, everyone has done something that they are not happy about, including yourselves.

Truth be told, many of you have lied, stolen, and cheated to be where you are in life. Futhermore, many of you are where you are in life because of nepotism, it has nothing to do with you working hard. Your merit alone would not reward you a job at Pizza Hut.

Some of you should really go home and try to fix the problems that abide there. Otherwise, we will continue to have lunatics walk into schools and kill innocent teachers and children, that is after they kill you!

Excuse me, make-it-right, but I have not lied, stolen or cheated to be where I am now. I've earned every nickle I made, but doing it the way I was taught. Honest work. Nepotism? Hardly. Thank the lord I'm not related to anyone in this town.
Yes, I feel sorry that this 'lady' lost her child. But if she was really grieving, why is she posting all over the Savannah Morning News? If she is in mourning, why is she even concerned about defending her son by online news?
And you are right, my troubles, while I have quite a few, never warranted a picture on the jail website.
And I'm not worried that anyone I raised will walk into a school and take out any lives. They've been loved and raised right. And even though they also have had their share of problems, their mother was there to help them. Not steal or drive in cars without insurance or deal drugs.

Nobody is perfect and that includes you ! Look in the mirror and you might not make negative comments. Who hasn't been to prison or doesn't have children killed in drug deals raise your hand. I didn't think so. We are all guilty of doing illegal things and taking gubbermint hand outs. Who can say they live their lives without sinning? Who is not guilty of having illegitimate children and living on welfare? No one ! If you can't say something good, say nothing at all ! Make-it-right and myself don't need any input from do-gooders. Word !

It's awonderful day in the 'hood. Todays word, boys and girls, is sarcasm. Can you say sarcasm? Some people will easily reconize it, but there are a very few that will not. I do have apologies to those mentally challenged.

You only have to post once. Also, stop the name calling! It only reveals your TRASHY character even the more! Geesh.....go figure!

As for the rest of you, I do not receive welfare and I work hard every day to provide for my family. My descendants did not benefit from free labor, nor the sweat off others back (Go figure). We work for everything we have, retire, and enjoy the benefits of our labor.

As stated earlier, I am in no way condoning the behavior of any parent that has not set a good example before his/her children. I am merely stating that this parent has lost a child and it is not the time to beat her down morally and blame her for her son's death. Why beat a horse while it's down? How does that make you feel better? How would you feel if someone did it to you?

The truth of the matter is, we have all done something that we are not proud of; some just have never been caught. It doesn't mean that the negative deed did not occur. So stop judging others as if you're perfect.

Also, for the life of me, please stop stating what your kids aren't doing and what crime they are capable of committing. You are not omnipresent; therefore, you cannot see what he/she is doing behind your back. Everyone labels there kids as loving, fun, and adorable. When it all boils down, you don't have a clue.

take care of yo self. Hope Beonca can see how make-it-right is defending her while she runs around screaming to the news. And just so we get this right, nobody was trashing you, 'miss make it right.' We're stating how sick and tired we are of the pathetic drug dealers and people who contribute to their own demise. As you stated: Don't take it so personal.

Of course none of us are perfect. We have all made mistakes because we are all mere imperfect human beings. And I am in no way a do gooder. But to say that most of us have lied, stolen and cheated to get to where we are today is ludicrous. I will not judge Beonca or her son. I don't know what their circumstances are but to be 23 years old and already have 6 children is troublesome. especially when you already have such a long rap sheet. What is more troublesome is that this is par for the course for so many in this area . Why do so many people think this is perfectly all right. I can't help but think that many of these children and so many others raised by single parents have a jail cell with their names on it waiting for them in a few years. How sad is that. So many children are doomed from the moment they take their first breath. There are no true role models for so many children. As someone said earlier "The apple doesn't fall from the tree"

Parental involvement (both parents) are the answers, NOT more government programs.

This 23 year old man was murdered in cold blood but that did not have to happen.